Steve, yes. Several of the fax machines I used to work on had plastic frames. Because I always turn the screw counter clockwise until it drops into the threads, I seldom stripped a screw out on them. But a certain other tech that I worked with, was notorious for stripping screws. One, because he just ran them in without lining up the threads. And 2, because he always gave them an “extra” quarter turn once they were tight.
David Maynard said:
One, because he just ran them in without lining up the threads. And 2, because he always gave them an “extra” quarter turn once they were tight.
That’s really shallow thinking, assuming there was any thinking which could be shallow.
I’d figured out the screws in plastic thing on my own at maybe earlier than 10 years old or at the latest 13 or 14.
I learned the counter clockwise start way back in 1967, aboard USS RANGER (CV 61) from BN2 Johnson. I first tried it on 8 inch fueling at sea hoses, with brass connectors. Never forgot it.
The reverse turn on screws to ensure threading is a new one for me. I will use the technique in the current window replacement in the recently acquired 1940s Union Pacific lounge and café cars at the Fullerton (CA) Train Museum. We have a minimum of 60 machine screws to remove and replace per each window replacement.
Thanks for the input.
Wendell